“Why do I run? Nowadays it’s to feel fit and healthy and for the mental health benefits you get from being active. For me running is almost like meditation, a way to unwind and recharge. It’s also to be fit enough to go on awesome adventures in amazing places with fabulous friends.
I wasn’t a runner or sporty at school – I spent a lot of lunchtimes during my High School years in the art room. I started to run a little bit in my late 20’s, just because I thought I should for fitness, but it was usually a couple of k’s if that, very intermittent and whenever I do get myself out there, it felt like a chore. I never got past the hating it stage.
When I turned 35, I bought myself a pair of cheap running shoes. My dad had had a triple heart bypass at the age of 47, and edging closer to 40, I was starting to feel like I really should do something to get properly fit, not just faff around at it. And also lose some weight.
I started off like a lot of people running lamppost to lamppost, with my dream (which i was too scared to tell anyone!) of running the Jumbo Holdsworth Trail Race. It just felt like such an impossible goal, so far out of my comfort zone, so I reached out to a lovely lady I had heard did a bit of running in that area. She excitedly told me that she would get her husband to get in contact with me as he loved helping people with training for this sort of stuff. All I could think was what on earth had I got myself into, as all I had heard about him was that he was a bit crazy and went for stupidly long runs! Anyway, Paul gave me some great help to get me started and also introduced me to Leigh, another local lady that ran trails, and also Ali & Kerry from Squadrun. Thanks to Ali’s encouragement, the next minute I find myself signing up to a 50k event and doing a marathon as part of the build up! The Squadrun community is so inspiring and full of encouragement, and the rest as they say is history. A couple of Old Ghost Ultras, 2 x 100k events, a 74k and a few 50ks is far away from what I thought I was capable of back when I first started. It’s crazy how much running can teach you about yourself, and what you can do with a great coach and training plan.
For the time being though, it’s all about those adventures with great friends in our incredible backyard.”
Sharisse @s.c.eberlein @sharisse.eberlein
(Wairarapa)
Photo taken in Te Anau
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